In New Zealand, dental practitioners can register with Work and Income (WINZ). When a patient needs dental care but cannot pay for your services, WINZ will reimburse you.
In this article, we explain what is involved in being a registered WINZ supplier, how to register, and the various details you need to know.
What is a WINZ supplier?
The Ministry of Social Development partners with various service providers and product suppliers across New Zealand. When people need support, they can get financial help from WINZ to pay for those services or products. These suppliers include housing providers and healthcare services.
By registering as a WINZ dental provider, you can assist individuals on low income or benefits, ensuring they have access to immediate and essential dental treatments. This maximises the accessibility of your clinic and promotes a minimum standard for all patients.
In 52 weeks, up to $1,000 is provided for eligible treatments per patient.
What dental treatments are included?
- Consultations, resulting in immediate and essential treatment. This includes X-rays.
- Extractions, excluding those for orthodontic purposes.
- Fillings and tooth restorations.
- Root canal treatment, excluding molars (unless exceptional circumstances exist).
- Treating infections, including antibiotics and any temporary measures needed to enable permanent treatment.
What dental treatments are not included?
- Regular dental check-ups.
- Cosmetic treatments.
- Cleaning, scaling, and polishing, unless teeth cleaning is required to treat a gum infection.
- Cast restorations.
- Orthodontic treatment.
- Molar root canal treatment, unless there are exceptional circumstances that mean a molar root canal is essential.
- Dentures, if the patient is eligible for recoverable dentures.
- Treatments that are co-paid by ACC.
- Payments over $1,000.
If your patient needs help with immediate and essential dental treatment that is over $1,000, or that will bring their total payments within 52 weeks to over $1,000, WINZ may still be able to contribute, however, they may need to pay some of this back.
Who can get WINZ dental services?
Patients who are on a low income or receiving a benefit may be eligible for financial support from WINZ, including for the dental treatments mentioned above. They may be able to get dental treatment for themselves or a child if immediate and essential work needs to be done. To apply for WINZ financial support, patients need to:
- be 16 or over,
- be a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident,
- normally live in New Zealand and intend to stay here,
- and have an immediate and essential need.
It also depends on how much they earn, any money or assets they have, and their income.
If your patient has exceptional circumstances, they may be eligible for an additional Special Needs Grant. This may apply to situations where your patient has any special or unusual reasons for their oral health issue or a health condition that could be severely impacted by their oral health issue.
Find more eligibility information on the WINZ website.
Become a Work and Income dental provider
To ensure WINZ can pay for your dental services, you need to register as a supplier.
1. Fill in the registration form
You can either complete an online or paper form.
When you register using the online form, only enter the first 60 characters of your business name or trading name and enter your GST or IRD number without spaces or dashes. Once you've completed and submitted the online form, we'll email you a copy of your form – you need to send this back to us as part of step 3.
You only need to use the paper form if the online form does not recognise your business address, your Merchant ID has letters in it, or you have problems filling in or accessing the online form. To use this form you need to download and print the PDF, fill in the form by hand, and scan or take a picture of the completed form.
2. Gather your supporting documents
Work and Income need verification of your bank account or building society account, showing your account name, account number, and bank logo. If you have EFTPOS, they also need an EFTPOS printout, confirming your EFTPOS Merchant ID number.
3. Send the form and supporting documents
Email your completed form and supporting documents to WINZ and cpu_suppliers@msd.govt.nz. If you completed the online form, make sure to include your application reference number in the subject line.
How to change your business details
Once you have registered, you need to change your business details by completing the Change of Details form. To complete the form, you will need to provide your WINZ registration number, GST or IRD number, any details that have changed, and other relevant business information.
Refunding money owed
If a client pays for services they don’t receive, you will need to refund the money to the Ministry of Social Development. You can complete the refund by direct credit using the following details:
- Account name: MSD ROBOC 3
- Account number: 03-0049-0006243-25
- Reference: Add the letter C and the customer’s 9-digit reference number (without
spaces or dashes) e.g. C123456789 - Code: RFD
- Particulars: Client surname and initials
Then email crown_revenue@msd.govt.nz to confirm a refund has been paid and include details of the amount, the customer’s surname and initial, the customer’s 9-digit MSD reference number, and what the refund is for.
Payments for WINZ approved dentists
If WINZ accepts a WINZ patient's application for treatment, they can make the payment using their Work and Income Payment Card via your EFTPOS machine. If you don't have an EFTPOS machine, WINZ can make a payment by bank transfer.
